Video: Riots In Oakland

What started out as a protest over the killing of Oscar Grant by BART officer Johannes Mehserle, escalated into a riot in Oakland.

As socially irresponsible as it sounds, I’m glad to see a few cop cars get turned over & some bottles get thrown. Will it ultimately change anything? Most likely not. Do such acts usually teem of ignorance because rioters usually end up indiscriminately damaging businesses in their own communities? Yes.

But making “protest raps,” a few t-shirts & watching Al Sharpton’s perm lead a trove of marchers while spitting rhetoric is emasculating. There’s no release of anger there, no sense of retribution. Then, you have a mayor making statements, full of legalese, in the face of a mob.

Earlier in the evening, Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums met the mob on 14th Street, urging calm and leading them on a walk to City Hall, where he gave a speech.

“I sense your frustration,” he told the crowd. “I understand that you’ve lost confidence in a process because you’ve seen what you believe is a homicide… But listen to me, we are a community of people. We are civilized people. We are a nation of laws.

“I’m asking people to disperse,” the mayor said to the couple hundred people in the crowd. “Let’s leave in a spirit of peace.”

“…What you believe is a homicide”? I understand police are allowed to use force. Whether it will be deemed as justifiable force or not has yet to be determined. But to make an assertion that it’s what people “believe” is a poor choice of words.

The video shows a homicide. The tears of Grant’s family, mourning over the loss of one of theirs, prove a homicide.

I’m all for allowing the justice system to slowly work its way into solving the rights & wrongs of a crime. However, part of me hopes some of the continuing outrage will show city leaders & the justice system that most Americans seem to believe it is indeed a homicide for which justice should be served.Protests Over BART Shooting Turn Violent [SF Chronicle]

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I don’t even understand how you can get justice or equality from out of this shit…That motherfcuker violated some sh*t he and the system can’t make right.

How the fcuk does the city expect citizens to react after seeing (again) the people assigned to protect and serve commit murder???
You reap what you sow – folks already know the drill – a “jury of peers” acquits or gives slaps on the wrists.

By: kelvinmercerlookalike

01.08.2009 @ 9:42 AM

that cop was pissed about a car? ninjas DIED my wonder slice!

By: 500k flea

01.08.2009 @ 9:46 AM

YEAH!!! Enough with the hiphop tributes, t-shirts, and rallies, it’s time for some good ol’ fashioned rioting. No looting stores and beating on innocent people, just marching in the street and destroying it!!! I hope that they burn every cop car and bomb every precinct until justice is served. I know that I sound ignorant but I don’t fucking care at this point.

By: NDiamonds

01.08.2009 @ 9:46 AM

I am glad to see that peoply are finally reacting to such a horrible event. Fuck a Rodney King, These Pigs REALLY fucked up…maybe now the EXECUTION of Oscar Grant will get the media attention that it deserves.

In my travels yesterday around Seattle as a top shelf Beer and Wine salesman I must have asked a good 12 people about the video of his death. Not one person knew what I was talking about. I busted out the LT and hipped these people to the situation. They were appalled and surprised that they hadn’t “heard about something like that in the news”….It’s not only 5-0 that’s fuckin up, the media is a joke…

And the mayor’s speech?? WTF.

By: NDiamonds

01.08.2009 @ 9:56 AM

A Fuck The Police T would be dope though.

And the copper resigned? Better catch that bitch before he bounces.

By: None (||)

01.08.2009 @ 10:10 AM

Well said.

By: Bigga Aka We the BEST aka I would say Dont get Gassed but its too late

01.08.2009 @ 10:24 AM

They are dragging their feet with this investigation. NDiamonds is right this murderer is a flight risk.

By: old.sole

01.08.2009 @ 10:51 AM

I can honestly say I’m actually proud of Oakland

By: forest ill

01.08.2009 @ 11:47 AM

“….It’s not only 5-0 that’s fuckin up, the media is a joke…”…word

By: El Rosado

01.08.2009 @ 12:09 PM

Another case just now coming out.

In Texas, an unarmed black man is shot in the driveway of his own home.

Granted, I haven’t watched much TV since the election, but I think media coverage of this atrocious incident has been intentionally scarce…increase the awareness people…expressing outrage is the least we can do, and we shouldn’t take this shit lying down

By: Malik V.

01.08.2009 @ 1:48 PM

There was actually some coverage in the paper today. The Mercury wrote about the riots and the cop resigning. The BART people are taking their own sweet time with the investigation. Businesses were damaged in the riots, but I didnt mind reading about cop cars getting turned over and destroyed.

By: AmpGeez a.k.a. My Name is My Name

01.08.2009 @ 2:48 PM

Rioting won’t change anything for the better, but I understand whole heartedly.

By: BLAZEdaCANNONz

01.08.2009 @ 2:56 PM

Not to promote violence or escalate a deadly situation, but here in PHILLY we have a stop-n-frisk law which means that officers (of any kind) can pull you over to search your car without any probable cause, hop out they police cruiser and search you even if your walking, and they dont need an warrant to run in your house all they need are complaints from neighbors and the community….I have been afraid of riots here in PHILLY also, but instead of rioting niggaz are shooting back at da law and killing em….Last year there were close to six officers killed with there badge on by citizens, but before that we had the highest murder rate in the country when ‘mayor john street’ (on his scond term) implemented his safe street program which give city officials permission to take your car for not driving with insurance, registration, or license and they would lock you up for like 1-2 months (depending on how many priors you had), also you would get 5-7 years in prison for carrying a concealed weapon that wasnt registered to you or stolen, so niggaz arent trying to go back to jail or prison….Now Mayor ‘Nutty’ (his name is mike nutter, but we call em ‘Nutty’) passed a law saying that if a convicted felon gets arrested than that person will spend a mandatory 5 years in prison with no possibility of parole, I may not be fully accurate cause I dont watch the news neither but I caught a whiff of the story when I was at a bar recently….
Im just wondering how is this gonna help decease violence when niggaz are tired of being treated like 2nd class citizens??

By: PagoKid

01.08.2009 @ 3:29 PM

Im just wondering how is this gonna help decease violence when niggaz are tired of being treated like 2nd class citizens??
=====
Scarface said it best on Get Right,”We ain’t first class citizens, and we ain’t second neither.”

By: The Real Anonymous

01.08.2009 @ 3:38 PM

I know some of you are from the Bay…

And in the Bay…

It is ALL over the news.

The “What you are about to see is disturbing” type warning before they show the video over and over again and everything.

Coverage here has been on point. And as difficult as it is to watch a man get shot (for no cause) on television…

I am proud of most our news channels/stations for not censoring anything.

I am even prouder of people for not only recording what really went down…

But also making their voices heard DURING the incident.

Hearing, “He’s not doing anything” from a large group of random strangers/people is reassuring in this day and age.

And helps in these people being held accountable (hopefully) for abusing their power.

By: Lazarus

01.08.2009 @ 3:58 PM

The officer who shot Oscar is named Johannes Mehserle, and he is presently under police protection. Since he wants to take the cowards route and not show up to give an account of his actions that night, steps need to be take to flush him out from whatever hole he’s hiding in. I did a little research and found the following:

Possible email address: jmehserle@sbcglobal.net.
eBay account name:jmehserle; this is almost definite because that username made a purchase from a cop store back in April
facebook: Closest connection I could find is Marrika Mehserle, who was a student at theUniversity of California -Davis campus in northern Cali. A cousin, or sister, perhaps?
I also found a Todd Mehserle in northern Cali; based on his birthday he’s possibly an uncle or maybe even his father.

Im looking up contact info on the president of the BART officers union. Hes been disturbingly silent on this tragedy and is no doubt helping to shelter the sorry excuse for a man tha killed Oscar Grant in cold blood.

By: BLAZEdaCANNONz

01.08.2009 @ 4:40 PM

^^
MAJORR!!!

By: El Rosado

01.08.2009 @ 5:30 PM

Real major there, Lazarus. I sent an e-mail to that account 15 minutes ago, hasn’t bounced back, so it’s legit, wonder if it belongs to him though. If it does, we gonna flood that beeyotch!!

By: ARon

01.08.2009 @ 5:43 PM

Man I’ve seen more coverage on the death of Travolta’s son than this, and its fucking pathetic. Usually I aint one for destroying your community but at this point its the only choice.

By: Lazarus

01.08.2009 @ 5:43 PM

Dont forget to hit the eBay account; its VERY likey the pig in question.

Back in April he made a purchase from the ebay store eCop, a law enforcement accessory store.

By: spizzy

01.08.2009 @ 6:29 PM

here’s his address:

Johannes Mehserle, 71 Belvedere Ct Napa, CALIFORNIA 94559-4140

By: spizzy

01.08.2009 @ 6:31 PM

note: I found that address using zabasearch.com. I did some research too – dude graduated from New Technology High School in Napa, CA and Napa Valley College of Criminal Justice, so I’m guessing thats his address.

I repeat, I’m not circulating his address to advocate any violence or anything……but we should all exercise our rights to let him/his family know that this type of bullshit will NOT be tolerated.

By: Scribe

01.08.2009 @ 7:20 PM

I have never heard of a cop who kills someone while on duty, no matter how blatantly unnecessary, being convicted of murder in the USA. The power structure seems to appreciate police brutality as another means of keeping the populace in line. You might say the OPD are pigs; they are. But I’ve lived in both the Bay Area and southern Maine and the cops here in my home town (South Portland, population 30k) have committed a few acts of wanton violence recently. Some police departments are worse than others, but the problem of police brutality is both systemic and nationwide.

By: Lazarus

01.08.2009 @ 7:31 PM

My thoughts EXACTLY! Its disgusting the way the department and the officers union are codling this killer while Grants family mourns. The cop in question is the primary suspect in a HOMICIDE, yet the police are shuttling him from house to house like hes the VICTIM of a crime! The department is basically harboring a fugitive from justice IMO.There should be round the clock protests/vigils at that address,Sheehan-style, til Mehserles mans the fuck up and answers for his actions that night. The thought that the Mehserle household is living life as usual while the Grant family is enduring so much suffering makes me naseous. I posted this information on a few other blogs, and some people where offended, until I reminded them that this is light compared to the kick-in the door,gestapo tactics the police would use if they were looking for a cop killer.

By: Essence

01.09.2009 @ 12:41 AM

smh…as a proud citizen of oakland california im dissappointed in the way this whole issue has been addressed by law enforcement. truth be told i heard this dude aready moved 3 times this year because of people tracking him and his family down…still nothing comin from his mouth tho.

i think that riot came at the wrong time and was disrespectful to Oscar Grant’s family who pleaded for the crowd to specifically NOT turn violent. this riot was necessary, but the timing was off…

that being said, i was truly proud to be from oakland and watch the people finally speak and BE HEARD. i got faith that justice will be served…one way or another

By: something slight

01.09.2009 @ 1:49 AM

Lazarus and spizzy came through with the info.they both share comments of the week(or, dare i say, year?! lol)…shit its not even the middle of 09 and cops are already shootin at (unarmed) us.what will it take for them to change their conduct? the accidental shooting of an unarmed, restrained “johnny”?…

By: Dwonn

01.09.2009 @ 4:25 AM

I agree that it is a problem with the system which the police work in,but to give out the man’s address and information about his family is wrong.While he is either a piece of shit or just a scared bitch ass white boy,his family has nothing to do with this.All this did was place these people,who may not even be his family,in danger.Don’t let anger drag you down to the same level as this piece of garbage.

By: DagNabbit

01.12.2009 @ 12:37 PM

Okay, so Oscar is no longer with us. Someone needs to take responsibility for his death. But seriously…its outrageous for the family to be asking for $25,ooo,ooo.oo , i mean no amount of money can replace a son ( a life, etc)… I dont think its at all appropriate…the hype makes me as angry as the murder does. Healing, Justice, and Prayer please.

By: GJTryon

04.14.2009 @ 11:12 PM

“…its outrageous for the family to be asking for $25,ooo,ooo.oo …” Not at all, Dagnabbit! Oscar Grant was a very young man with a lifetime of enjoyment and earnings potential ahead of him. His aggrieved family is certainly entitled to substantial recompense for his loss. Also there’s the punitive element to consider. Standard tort dictates that the corporation must be made to pay for its badly trained personnel and haphazard policies… Rioting is the real distraction, a sideshow, that will give the powers that be an out and the police an opportunity to remind everyone how much we need them. What we need is justice.